Shamim Khan leads a very busy life in Birmingham with her two young sons and husband, running the family Pharmacy as well as being a Freelance Lingerie Designer and Assistance to a Photographer. Shamim studied the Bar course at the University of Law, London but she returned to Birmingham to start a family and family business.
1) Which place, or city or country do you most feel at home in? (50 words response)
I love to travel and explore different cultures but my roots are embedded in Birmingham. My childhood memories and my family are here. Home is where the heart is, and that’s definitely Birmingham for me.
2) What are your proudest achievements? (50 words response)
That has to be completing my legal education after getting married with the support of my husband and family. Studying law especially after a big Pakistani wedding did raise a few eyebrows in our community but I led the way to demonstrate that it’s okay to study after getting married.
3) What inspires you? (50 words response)
Women in power inspire me.
4) What has been biggest obstacle in your career? (50 words response)
Studying law after getting married was challenging enough, but as an asian female from a working class background, with children, trying to enter a middle class, white, male dominated profession has been the most difficult obstacle.
5) Who has been the biggest influence on your career to date? (50 words response)
The whole of our older generation have inspired me to work hard to achieve our collective dreams. Watching them struggle to communicate in English, taught me the value of the education system from a very young age as I would often find myself being their translator.
6) What is the best aspect about your current role? (50 words response)
It has to be interacting with the patients who can’t always leave their homes. They look forward to just having chat with a friendly person and quite often it’s the highlight of their day. Together, my husband and I have been effectively looking after the vulnerable and elderly patients.
7) And the worst? (50 words response)
The pandemic has been tough as we’ve not only lost people, but we’ve had to remain open while other businesses were closed. We’ve had to send our children to school at an uncertain time where no-one knew what was going on just so that we could continue serving the community.
8) What are your long term goals? (50 words response)
I’d like to train and practise at the Bar. As a young girl, I would listen to my friends talking about embarking on top professions. I never dreamt that would be possible for me so I settled on aiming for a secretarial role - I never managed to pursue that!
9) If you were Prime Minister, what one aspect would you change? (50 words response)
I would abolish grammar schools that cause an unnecessary divide and make the highest paid professions accessible to all. I would also sneak in a compulsory trip for all children to visit a third world country so they understand poverty and actively help reduce climate change.
10) If you were marooned on a desert island, which historical figure would you like to spend your time with and why. (50 words response)
I would say Florence Nightingale. If she can handle the mammoth task of establishing an improved healthcare system whilst helping to expand the acceptable forms of female participation in the workplace, then I am certain that together we could hatch a plan to escape from the island.
